Emerging Topics in Environmental Law
Point/Counterpoint on Requiring Upgrades When Buildings Undergo Major Renovation
In an earlier post (Part One) I described the broad outlines of the new City of Seattle Energy Code that is under development. The new Seattle Energy Code seeks to go significantly beyond the newly approved 2012 Washington State Energy Code – which itself…
Grinding Out the Ground Game of Energy Efficiency
Back in October of 2011 the Seattle City Council passed a resolution “committing” the City to become a zero-net greenhouse gas emitter by 2050. Although individuals, cities, and governments or organizations in general seldom achieve lofty goals without first setting lofty goals, we all know that lofty…
Pundits, at least pundits of a certain stripe, have long decried the fact that the United States has no energy strategy. Without a strategy, the argument goes, we are left at the whim of forces we cannot control and that will whipsaw the economy and the nation.
And so, one has to be a bit…
In 2000 the City of Seattle became the first city in the country to require that all city buildings over 5,000 square feet achieve LEED silver rating. The City’s goal in doing that was to spur development of LEED buildings by demonstrating their value and increasing the familiarity of the local design professions and contractors…